A former chief constable of Northumbria Police has hit out claiming she was left in the dark over a decision to pay a convicted sex offender £10,000.

The sex offender, codenamed XY, was recruited as an informer to help with an investigation into sexual exploitation in the city’s West End.

He was paid a total of £9,680 over 21 months for providing intelligence on sex parties where girls were drugged and raped by gangs of men.

This was despite the fact that years previous he drugged and raped a teenage girl before inviting another man to rape her after he had done so.

Chief Constable of Northumbria Police Sue Sim

Even after he was recruited as an informant, XY was arrested on suspicion of a sexual offence against an underage girl, who in 2015 claimed a man approached her and made an indecent proposition.

Sue Sim, a former chief constable of Northumbria Police who was in charge when Operation Sanctuary was launched, has revealed she is “appalled” by news of the controversial payment.

Ms Sim was still in control when XY was deployed but alleges she was not told about the decision to bring him on board and if she had been she would have refused to allow it.

She said: “I would never have condoned the use of XY. It is letting down other victims.

“It’s appalling. To use a convicted child rapist is just appalling. I apologise to all victims who feel they have been let down by the police’s use of a child rapist. I certainly did not want people to think I authorised that and condoned it.

“I am horrified. They have got these people off the streets and that is superb, but those convictions could have been secured with good police work.”

The revelations regarding XY emerged during pre-trial hearings at Newcastle Crown Court which attempted, but failed, to halt prosecutions against a number of men accused of a range of serious offences including drug dealing and sexually abusing girls.

It was revealed XY had 13 previous convictions, including 26 offences of dishonesty and was also on the sex offenders’ register.

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Defence barristers had argued XY’s use as an informant would undermine the public’s confidence in the justice system and the case should be thrown out.

But Judge Penny Moreland turned down the abuse of process application, ordering that the trials of the defendants should go ahead.

She added: “I do not regard myself as bound to act on evidence which is so inherently unreliable, so lacking in credibility and in my view so clearly dishonest.”

Chief Constable Steve Ashman (Image: newcastle chronicle)

A Northumbria Police spokesperson said: “As a member of the public, Mrs Sim is of course entitled to her opinion. The force has been open and transparent in its response to Operation Sanctuary and XY. However, it wouldn’t be appropriate to comment on individuals’ opinions.”

Current chief constable Steve Ashman has stood by the decision to deploy XY.

He claims without the help of XY officers may never have breached the Operation Shelter network and more vulnerable girls and women could have been abused.